


The Dove-Gray Sky

by fanfoolishness (LoonyLupin), LoonyLupin



Series: The Outer Rim [9]
Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Family Bonding, Family Feels, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 16:54:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28656795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LoonyLupin/pseuds/fanfoolishness, https://archiveofourown.org/users/LoonyLupin/pseuds/LoonyLupin
Summary: The Child sees snow for the first time with Din, and they take a moment to enjoy the quiet.
Relationships: Din Djarin & Grogu | Baby Yoda
Series: The Outer Rim [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2055645
Comments: 16
Kudos: 117





	The Dove-Gray Sky

Din’s footsteps padded softly in the new-fallen snow, boots sinking several inches with each pace through the woods. He held the child closer to him, twitching the edge of his cloak over his shoulder so he could drape it over the foundling in his arms. One green ear still stuck out, and the child cooed as thick heavy snowflakes landed on his skin and melted.

“Have you seen snow before?” Din asked, despite the fact the kid wasn’t much of a conversationalist. The kid slowly reached out, his hand turning upward to catch more snowflakes in his palm while still staying under the warmth of the cloak. Din knew he’d seen sand and lava fields, the krill ponds and woods of Sorgan, but snow, that was definitely something new. 

Din was just glad that this moon was fairly temperate; no lashings of bitter wind, no blizzard-like loss of visibility. It was a good place to reup on food and supplies, and Din had been to the little mining town before between jobs. He’d never visited in the winter, though, and the snow coming down while he and the kid picked up food at the market stalls had been a surprise.

He’d left the _Crest_ well beyond the edge of town, ever wary of prying eyes. So he trudged now through the snowy woods, the bags of new supplies swinging against his legs as he walked, vaguely annoyed at the turn in the weather. 

His mind spun with plans. The barkeep he knew in the village had moved on, but her replacement was just as willing to talk for a small fee, and she’d heard rumors of Mandalorian sightings on a scuzzy little world a few sectors over. He knew the gamemaker she’d spoken of, and suspected a doublecross was probably pretty likely, but it was the closest thing he’d had to a lead in weeks. He plotted it out in his head, barely noticing the snow growing deeper, sinking up to his shins. The Armorer’s words reverberated in his ears, the Creed’s teachings echoing. _The task --_

He felt a shiver against him, not his own, and stopped suddenly. “Kid?” he asked.

He carefully set the bags of supplies down, kneeling in the snow beneath the towering trees. He balanced the kid on his lap and turned the little one to face him. “I know it’s cold. You okay?”

The kid shook his little head, and snowflakes rained down from where they had started to accumulate on the top of his head. Din swore under his breath. “I’m sorry. Thought I wrapped you up better than that. C’mere, let me look you over.”

He wrapped the cloak more tightly around the kid, and carefully checked him for signs of frostbite: tips of the soft delicate ears, the nubbin of his nose, each finger, each toe. To his relief, each was just as green as ever, flushing pink with the gentle pinch Din gave at each spot to check the blood flow. The kid made a noise like a laugh, maybe thinking it was some kind of game. 

Din sighed, brushing the snow off his shoulders, and found a dry patch of his cloak to nestle the kid against. The kid yawned, giving him a content half-smile.

Din sat there with him, his mind quieting. A clearing in the snow-cloaked trees had opened up, a fact he hadn’t even registered before the need to check on the child had made him stop. He sat at the edge of the snowy meadow, watching the flakes fall.

He could hear them, now that he was still. Each heavy flake landed with the softest sound against the white ground, the cadence like a rainstorm, the sound itself muffled as if coming from far, far away. A gentle breeze fluttered past them, sending the trees shifting slightly in their heights. The gray-white sky was calm in a way that settled deep into his chest, and he let out a long breath. 

The kid burrowed against him, gazing out at the snow. It almost seemed to glow, illuminated as it was by a hazy distant star. The kid stopped shivering, and through his gloved fingertips Din could tell the little one was warming up again. Din gazed out at the snow with him. “What are you looking at?” he murmured.

Then he saw it, at the edge of the clearing. A tall, lean, cervid-like animal, a crown of small horns twining delicately from its gray-furred head. It cautiously stepped into the open from the shadow of the trees, its neck long and graceful, its hooves silent in the snow. Din glanced down, and saw the kid staring in rapt fascination, his eyes wide.

The cervid shook its fine head and disappeared back into the trees with a bound, leaving only faint footprints behind. The kid let out a plaintive little sound and looked up at Din, questioning.

‘He was looking for food,” said Din. “Just like somebody else I know.” He rubbed the kid’s cheek, and felt himself smile beneath the helmet. “Come on, let’s get you home and fed, buddy.”

He got to his feet, collecting the supplies and slinging them over his shoulder, taking care to keep the baby warm in his cloak. He paused for a moment.

_Home._

He stood there, his hand still caressing the kid’s cheek. The kid snuggled against him, hugging him around the vambrace and using his hand for a pillow. The snow fell around them, the flakes bright against the dove-gray sky, and all was quiet.

“Yeah,” said Din, his voice cracking. “Let’s go home.”

**Author's Note:**

> For novantinuum/chromaticdreams!


End file.
